Chininum sulphuricum: playing chess at a thousand miles per hour

by Gaela Nelson

I first met CM,
a 44 year old man, in his home; due to his condition he was not able to drive.
It was September of 2007. He had been diagnosed with Ménière’s disease; he had
debilitating attacks of extreme vertigo with spinning, during which he would
fall down and experience violent vomiting and diarrhea, lasting an hour and a
half. He was having four episodes per week at first, although now he is having fewer
– perhaps one every week. He takes Gravol (a medication for car sickness), when
he feels a certain way in his stomach, his ‘warning sign’. For the last two
years, he has had tinnitus with ringing and waves crashing in his ears, with
about 25% hearing loss in the right ear. His Eustachian tube collapsed on a
flight five years earlier.

My first
impression of him was to wonder if he had recently consumed a large amount of
coffee – he seemed very excited, spoke quickly, and it was evident that his
thought processes were very fast, with many ideas. He told me right away that
he is the CEO of several companies, and enjoys playing soccer at a high level,
but that all his activities and his social life have had to be curtailed
because of his illness.

CM: “It’s debilitating.
It affects my lifestyle, I have to stay here (at home); I can’t go and do what
I want. It’s the randomness. It happened in the theatre, it could happen
anywhere.”

He acknowledged
that work stress was probably a factor in his condition, but explained that he
enjoyed stress and pressure, and being involved in many things.

CM: “My mind never
stops, I don’t know how to shut off my brain; even when I sleep I work, I
devour information, I go through stuff. In a typical day, I read a lot; I read
the whole Economist from front to
back, I consume information. I’m a serial
entrepreneur; I like starting things, not operating things. If I have to
operate things – that’s not scratching me where I itch, it’s boring…mundane. If
I’m not learning, doing something interesting, I’m out. I worked in an
accounting firm, I was incredibly bored; I want to keep my mind sharp.
Economics is much more theoretical and abstract. Soccer is both
physical and cerebral, it’s like playing chess at 1000 miles an hour; you are
intellectually stimulated. I read soccer theory books, connecting soccer with
globalization. It’s spontaneous, like jazz. I’m focused on
health, wealth and self… to make myself happy, to do things that make me happy.
I don’t care about status. I’m an easy going boss, let people work at home. I
don’t like authority.”

CM described a
happy family life and a good relationship with his family and with his wife,
who is also independent and a high achiever. They have no children.

He has cravings
for sugar and chocolate but tries to maintain a healthy diet, with low salt and
lots of veggies and fruits. He enjoys smoothies. He is a hot person and is
often restless at night. He likes coffee but can only drink one cup a day.

He feels better
when he can keep very still, as moving his head can bring on the feeling of
imbalance and vertigo.

He does not have
many fears or anxieties; he says he is ‘fearless’ but he doesn’t like to fail,
or to disappoint others.

He had some
acupuncture, which helped somewhat with the frequency of the attacks, but he
stopped going. He was encouraged to take up meditation and yoga but, he said,
“It’s like watching paint dry.”

Rubrics (MacRepertory)

Mind,
Excitement, as after coffeeMind, Ideas,
abundantMind, TheorizingVertigo, as if
turning in a circleVertigo with
vomitingVertigo,
Ménière’s DiseaseVertigo, with
tendency to fallHearing, Noises,
with vertigoGeneralities,
Food and drinks, sugar, sweets, desires

I looked at China Officinalis, which covered many of
his symptoms. CM seems to fit well with
Sankaran’s description of the malarial miasm and the sensation of China: “His mind is
full of many plans but he feels stuck in a position in which he can’t fulfill
any of them and, moreover, he has to face attacks from time to time.” (Insight into Plants, Volume II, p. 477)

Yet, there were
qualities of his presentation that fitted more with Sulphur;
his enjoyment of abstract theorizing, connecting ideas like soccer and
globalization, a fair bit of boastfulness, his dislike of authority, and his
focus on self.

Chininum sulphuricum fits best with my overall impression of
him. I could see the sensations of the Rubiaceae family, as well as many Sulphur
qualities. Stronger than either element singly, the combined salt – China
with Sulphur - has a much stronger emphasis on
Meniere’s disease. The feeling captured in his words: “Playing chess at 1000
miles per hour” really sums up the qualities of Chininum sulphuricum!

Prescription: Chininum sulphuricum 200CH, one dose.

Follow-ups

One month later,
he reported feeling somewhat better; he had had no severe attacks, and he had
not taken a single Gravol since the remedy. He was feeling some anxiety about a
stress test he had taken, and about the health of his heart. He also felt some
pain in his left shoulder. He felt slightly imbalanced and was aware of it when
walking in the dark.

Two months later,
he drove to my office for his follow-up. He had been on a flight to Italy, to visit his family, with no
problems. He is playing soccer again and going out. He reported feeling
completely better, with only a few moments of ‘imbalance’ here and there. His sleep is better. He said the bad feeling was gone from his
stomach – the feeling which had been a warning sign that, if he didn’t take a
Gravol, he would soon be vomiting. Now, he has neither taken the Gravol nor has
he had the stomach symptoms. He has been able to focus on wrapping up the project
which was causing him the most stress. He was very happy with his progress.

One year later,
we had a brief telephone conversation in which he stated that he was doing
well, with no relapse of symptoms.

In 2011, I
telephoned him to ask for his permission to publish this article; he said,
“Definitely! I am still feeling great!”

Totally liked to read this case Gaela...nice to see MM write up from our literature, i.e. - Clarke, in action or within modern context. So tx lots. Best, Laura Coramai.

Posts: 4

Good caseReply #3 on : Wed March 28, 2012, 07:25:12

A very good case well presented. I wonder if you have come across some of the other Chininum salts like Chininum Mur, Phos, Nitricum etc? There is not much information in the Materia medica. It would be good to have a compartive study of these salts.

Posts: 4

Well doneReply #2 on : Tue January 03, 2012, 23:37:39

Well done Gaela. I enjoyed reading this case. It is clearly laid out and well presented. It is giving me some food for thought. Warmly, Meryl